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Northern Star

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The Student News Site of Northern Illinois University

Northern Star

The Student News Site of Northern Illinois University

Northern Star

NIU football players celebrate in the locker room after beating the Western Michigan Broncos Friday at Waldo Stadium in Kalamazoo, Mich. NIU won, 31-21.

NIU football takes down Western Michigan Broncos in comeback

By Frank Gogola | November 30, 2014

Football knew it had what it took to come back from a 21-10 halftime deficit against the Western Michigan Broncos to seal its fifth-straight trip to the MAC Championship game.The Huskies (10-2, 6-1 MAC) scored the game’s final 24 points, including 21...

Football stuffs Fleck’s gamble

By Frank Gogola | November 30, 2014

P.J. Fleck, Western Michigan head coach and NIU alumnus, saw his opportunity to throw a knockout punch that would dethrone the four-time defending MAC West champion Huskies.Instead, Fleck’s fourth-down play call midway through the third quarter turned...

Women’s basketball salvages win

By Frank Gogola | November 30, 2014

Women’s basketball’s offense came out of hibernation as the Huskies picked up a win in their third and final game over Thanksgiving break.The Huskies (2-4) lost to the Eastern Illinois Panthers, 55-46, in senior guard Amanda Corral’s return Wednesday...

Rapid Reaction: NIU football 31, Western Michigan Broncos 21

November 28, 2014

What happened: The Huskies (10-2, 7-1 MAC) scored the game’s final 24 points to beat the Western Michigan Broncos (8-4, 6-2 MAC), 31-21, to clinch the MAC West title.How it happened: Freshman kicker Christian Hagan split the uprights on a 40-yard field...

Breaking Down the Broncos

By Frank Gogola | November 25, 2014

The No. 14 football team will close out its regular season with a matchup against Western Michigan at 6 p.m. today at Huskie Stadium. The Huskies (11-0, 7-0 MAC) will look to win their 12th straight game, increase their nation-leading home winning streak to 26 games and extend their nation-leading conference winning streak to 25. The Huskies also look to claim the school’s first undefeated record as an FBS program in school history. Sports writer Brian Earle (@NSSBrianE22) will break down the Broncos.

Quarterback: The Broncos’ starting quarterback job has been back and forth all season between senior Tyler Van Tubbergen and redshirt freshman Zach Terrell. Van Tubbergen has made six starts compared to Terrell’s five, but he is out the rest of the season with a shoulder injury. Terrell started in the Broncos’ most recent game against Central Michigan. He has been up and down in his first season, throwing eight touchdowns as well as eight interceptions. He completes 53.3 percent of his passes and has thrown for 1,463 yards this season. He is not a mobile quarterback as on the season he has totaled -15 rushing yards.

Running back: The Broncos feature two running backs in their backfield with a similar number of carries. Senior Dareyon Chance has carried the ball 138 times for 658 yards while senior Brian Fields has 143 carries for 552 yards. Fields has done a better job of finding the end zone this season as he has six rushing touchdowns compared to Chance’s two touchdowns. In the red zone, Fields will see the bulk of the carries. Fields is used sparingly in the passing game as he has caught 13 passes for 122 yards.

Wide Receiver: The playmaker in the Broncos’ offense is freshman Corey Davis. Davis leads the Broncos and the nation’s freshman wide receivers in receiving yards, receptions, receiving yards per game, yards per catch and receiving touchdowns. He has recorded 64 receptions for 913 yards and six touchdowns. He averages 14.3 yards per catch and 91.3 yards per game. On the season he has recorded two 100-yard receiving games. With 87 more yards he will become the fourth wide receiver in MAC history to reach 1,000 yards in his freshman season.

Offensive line: The most experienced member of the Broncos’ offensive line is senior Terry Davisson. He is the anchor of a line that has surrendered 20 total sacks for a loss of 142 yards this season. They will be challenged by the Huskies’ defensive unit, which is fourth in the MAC with 28 sacks this season. Since Terrell is not a very mobile quarterback, the offensive line will have to buy as much time as it can for Terrell to find an open receiver. If Terrell doesn’t have any time to throw, it could be a long day for Western Michigan.

Defensive line: Senior Travonte Boles has done a little bit of everything for the Broncos at defensive tackle this season. He has recorded 51 total tackles on the season and been a force at stopping the run, with five tackles for a loss of 12 yards. Boles can also get after the quarterback as he has 1.5 sacks as well as a quarterback hurry on the season. Boles has also been solid in pass coverage this season as he grabbed an interception and broken up three passes. He is also coming off a game in which he blocked a PAT attempt against Central Michigan.

Linebacker: Senior Kyle Lark has been a tackling machine for the Broncos this season. He is the second-leading tackler on the team with 88 total tackles. He has been strong against the run, making five tackles for a loss of 11 yards. He has not recorded a sack on the season, but in pass coverage he has recorded two pass deflections and two pass breakups. He has not picked off a pass, but he has one fumble recovery on the season.

Secondary: The leader of the defense is junior strong safety Justin Currie. The strong safety leads the Broncos with 103 total tackles, 54 of them solo. He is a hard-hitting defensive back, recording two fumbles on the season. He has made seven tackles for a loss of 20 yards and gotten to the quarterback once this season. He is strong in pass coverage as he has picked off three passes while breaking up nine passes. The Huskies will want to be aware of where Currie is on the field at all times.

Special teams: Sophomore kicker Andrew Haldeman has been the Broncos’ leading scorer this season. He has been responsible for 66 points this season, which is 30 more than the next-highest scorer. He has been an accurate kicker this season, hitting 16-18 field goals. He has been busy kicking field goals of late as nine of his 16 field goals have come in the last two games. Haldeman hit six field goals against Eastern Michigan and three against Central Michigan. He also has not missed an extra point, hitting 18-18 PATs.

Women’s hoops seeks ‘confidence’

By Frank Gogola | November 25, 2014

Women’s basketball hopes to find its offensive rhythm when it hits the road for a trio of games over Thanksgiving break.The Huskies (1-2) take on the Eastern Illinois Panthers (1-3) noon Wednesday at Lantz Arena in Charleston.They will partake in the...

Balanced effort guides men’s hoops past Idaho

By Frank Gogola | November 23, 2014

A quartet of Huskies scored in double figures as men’s basketball held off the Idaho Vandals to remain undefeated.The Huskies (2-0) beat the Vandals (2-1), 78-67, Thursday at the Convocation Center to improve to 2-0 for the first time since the 2006-07...

Bennett: Worst we’ve played

Bennett: Worst we’ve played

By Frank Gogola | November 23, 2014

Fifth-year head coach Kathi Bennett said women’s basketball’s first-half performance Thursday was the worst the Huskies have played in her tenure.The Huskies (1-2) dropped their second game in a row, losing 65-50 to the Valparaiso Crusaders (2-1)...

Women’s hoops duels Crusaders

By Frank Gogola | November 19, 2014

Women’s basketball’s defense faces its toughest task of the season when the Valparaiso Crusaders come to DeKalb today.The Huskies (1-1) host the Crusaders (1-1) 6 p.m. at the Convocation Center. Through two games the Crusaders are averaging 70 points...

Junior safety Marlon Moore (2) celebrates recovering a fumble in NIU’s 21-14 win against Ohio on Nov. 18 at Peden Stadium in Athens, Ohio. NIU is now one win away from securing a trip to the MAC Championship. The Huskies take on the Western Michigan Broncos 10 a.m. Nov. 28 at Waldo Stadium in Kalamazoo, Mich.

1 win: That’s what NIU football needs to get back to MAC Championship

By Frank Gogola | November 19, 2014

Football’s victory over the Ohio Bobcats Tuesday positions the Huskies one win away from their fifth-straight trip to Detroit.The Huskies (9-2, 6-1 MAC) beat the Bobcats (5-6, 3-4 MAC), 21-14, at Peden Stadium in Athens, Ohio. If the Huskies beat the...

Rapid Reaction: NIU 21, Ohio 14

By Frank Gogola | November 18, 2014

What happened: Football (9-2, 6-1 MAC) beat the Ohio Bobcats (5-6, 3-4 MAC), 21-14, Tuesday at Peden Stadium in Athens, Ohio.How it happened: Redshirt senior tailback Cameron Stingily opened the scoring with a 2-yard touchdown run on the first play of...

Senior forward Alex Dumoulin (34) plays against Illinois State Friday at the Convocation Center. The Huskies lost their first game of the season when they fell to the Illinois-Chicago Flames, 61-47, Monday at the UIC Pavilion in Chicago.

Women’s basketball stumbles

By Frank Gogola | November 17, 2014

The Illinois-Chicago Flames were too hot to handle for a cold-shooting women’s basketball squad.The Huskies (1-1) shot 27.8 percent from the field as they lost to the Flames (2-0), 61-47, Monday at the UIC Pavilion in Chicago. The Flames shot 43.6 percent...